


I Don't Know If I'm Ready For What Comes Next

by MirrorManning



Category: Power Rangers, Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: F/F, Gen, Pre-Relationship, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-27
Updated: 2017-04-12
Packaged: 2018-10-11 09:39:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10461807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MirrorManning/pseuds/MirrorManning
Summary: The Rangers learn to be a team when the threat isn't quite so dire, and Trini and Kimberly figure out just what exactly they are to each other.This is my take on adapting various plot elements from the show to the reboot universe, while seeing where Kimberly and Trini's relationship might take them.





	1. Standing On The Edge Of Something

**Author's Note:**

> This is my take on adapting elements of MMPR, expect Rita commanding monsters from the moon, power weapons, possibly Tommy Oliver somewhere down the road, maybe even Zed if I get that far.
> 
> This is now a single chaptered work, instead of a series full of one-shots. Probably because I'm super indecisive, and didn't want to fight with moving my Rita fic back into the main story if I decided to make that change somewhere down the road.
> 
> I've decided to change Trini's last name to Gomez after seeing comments Becky G made back in May about her character's last name definitely not being Kwan. Interviews with Patrick Sabongui who played her father have him calling his character "Mr. Kwan" but I suspect that was a placeholder. I hope we get a definitive last name for her at some point, but for now we're going with Gomez.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day is saved. Angel Grove, the Zeo Crystal, and the rest of the planet survive to see another day. Kimberly just isn't sure she's the right one for the job if she has to do it a second time.  
> Or:  
> Kimberly grapples with self-doubt, and Trini teaches her some tai chi.

Angel Grove is quiet after the attack.

 

It doesn't take long for the world to return to normal. Once the funerals are past and the repairs are under way, the small town comes together in a way that honestly would have shocked Kimberly just two weeks prior.

 

This place is a hell hole, or so she'd thought. Seeing the community supporting each other in the wake of Rita's disaster makes Kimberly feel proud to have saved it. She might have wanted nothing more than to leave this town behind just days before Rita attacked, but life as a Ranger has given her perspective. There are good people here, and as much as Kim hated life in Angel Grove before becoming a Ranger, she can admit she was a large part of her own problem.

 

Now life is all about picking up the pieces and moving on, learning how all the new pieces fit. She has her new friends, real friends this time. Their misfit band of castoffs and outsiders fits together like they belong. They all get weird looks and whispers in the halls. Kimberly Hart and Jason Scott slumming it with the rejects and nobodies because no one else will have them.

 

It doesn't matter.

 

Three weeks after the attack daily training sessions in the pit have become routine, and this weird old spaceship with its talking wall, and robot butler, and misfit band out screw ups and outcasts has started to feel like home.

 

Kimberly can't help that feeling in her gut that's waiting for the other shoe to drop. It creeps in when she least expects it. In the halls between classes she'll look out over the crowd of students and think 'These kids are my responsibility, but what if I'm not enough?'

 

The news praises local clean up efforts, but can't decide if they even believe the Rangers really happened. Anything other than local news seems to think it's all a hoax. Kimberly feels like a hoax half the time anyway. Rita said there was worse to come, that the Zeo Crystal would bring more disasters down on their little town.

 

Some days Kim throws herself into training so hard she can tell the others are worried.

 

Trini finally stops her after training on one of her worst days. Angel Grove spreads out beneath their little clifftop refuge and it all looks so small and fragile from this height.

 

Trini doesn't say much at first, just keeps an eye on Kim and waits. Kim can't meet her eyes so she stares out at the town instead.

 

Finally, Kimberly breaks the silence, “Do you ever wonder what comes next?”

 

Kimberly looks back to Trini and waits for the girl's usual short remark.

 

“Sure I do, but that's what this training's for, right? We beat Rita with less than two weeks prep time. Whatever comes next, I gotta believe we can take it. This power we're all connected to now, it feels sometimes like we're barely scratching the surface, you know?”

 

Trini seems so sure of herself, and Kim wishes she had a fraction of that confidence. There's a lot Kim wishes about when it comes to Trini. She fights like she was born for it, takes to their training so naturally it's like she's always been a Power Ranger. There's so much power and grace in her tiny frame that it's hard for Kim to look away sometimes. Sometimes it's harder to look directly at her.

 

Kimberly feels inadequate.

 

“I just wonder what else is out there. Was Rita just mouthing off when we had her backed into a corner or is there really something worse coming? What if we're... what if I'm not enough?”

 

Trini takes a few steps closer and lays a hand on Kimberly's arm. She holds it there until Kimberly meets her eyes, “Hey, we've got this, okay? You really stepped up to the plate when we got our Zords and took on Goldar. We couldn't have done it without you. Whatever comes next? We can handle it, and we've always got your back. None of us are alone in this, and the coins chose use for a reason. You've got to believe we're not just a bunch of dumb kids playing at being super heroes.”

 

Kimberly sinks into the warmth of Trini's hand for a few moments and then forces herself to pull back. She turns back to look out over the city and moves her arm out of Trini's hold.

 

“I know why the coins chose all of you. I just wonder sometimes, why me? I was a real bitch before I met you guys, you know. You haven't seen that side of me, and it's hard to believe I'm just suddenly a better person because the alien man in the talking wall told me I have a destiny now. What if I'm just kidding myself about being a hero now?”

 

At this, Trini steps around Kimberly to stand between her and the cliff's edge, intruding into her personal space and placing a hand on either shoulder.

 

Trini's glare is broken up by a hint of a smirk around her mouth, “Kimberly Hart, I know _exactly_ who you were before this mess started, so don't act like you've got some deep dark past that's going to come back and ruin everything just because you haven't fully forgiven yourself for it. You were an insecure, self-centered mean girl who was too busy being _terrified_ that your popular friends wouldn't like you enough that you never really bothered to try to like them back. You forget I've been watching all of you guys for months. You aren't a bad person, Kimberly. You're just a bit of a mess and people got hurt because of it. Yourself included. Let it go. You've got real friends now, and you do have a destiny. We got this.”

 

Trini's eyes are so close to Kimberly's now that it's hard to focus on anything else. Kim has to remind herself to breath while she takes in what her friend is saying. Her gaze flicks down to Trini's lips as the smaller girl finishes speaking and after a long moment that should be awkward, Trini's curls her lip back up into a smirk and slowly steps out of Kimberly's space.

 

Kimberly has to close her eyes for a second to get her bearings. Finally she looks over at Trini to find her still carefully studying Kim's face, “So, it's just that simple, huh? Let it go, save the world, we got this?”  
  
Trini's smile is infectious, “Yep, that simple. Also that hard. Just focus on what matters, and remember that we believe in you as much as you believe in us. And maybe take a second every now and then to look out over Angel Grove and remember what we're gonna be fighting for. For a really long time this town never felt like home, but I always did love to watch it wake up in the mornings.”

 

Kimberly brushes her shoulder up against Trini's as she joins her on the cliff's edge.

 

“That reminds me. Zack said he sees you out here sometimes. What were you even doing out here the night we found the coins?”

 

Trini's smile grows wide, “How 'bout I show you sometime? Meet me on the outskirts of the mine at 6 tomorrow morning. It'll be fun.”

 

With that Trini leans back dangerously over the edge of the cliff, and then plants her feet and kicks off hard, throwing herself into a flip as she goes hurtling down the hillside toward the town below.

 

Kimberly can only shake her head and smile. She's never had a friend like Trini before. It's a little bit terrifying, a little bit exciting, and Kim wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

Waking up at five the next morning to drag herself out to the mine by six is a lot easier said than done. Everything in Kimberly wants to curl back up into her bed and get as much sleep as she can before the world demands she wake up. It's a Sunday and the only day she can normally afford to sleep in, but Trini is waiting for her, and she can't fight her curiosity over what Trini might have to show her.

 

It takes longer than Kimberly would like to get dressed and ready, and even longer to leave the house once the rest of the family starts moving about. She makes a detour for coffee on the way and arrives outside the mine only fifteen minutes late. At least she brought Starbucks as an apology.

 

Trini's nowhere to be found near the mine's main entrance and Kimberly's starting to wonder if Trini has given up on her by the time she circles around the outskirts and finally sees a small figure standing on a hillside. They're hard to make out in the early morning twilight, but as she gets closer the figure resolves itself into Trini's compact form.

 

Trini has a large set of headphones over her ears, and is facing away from Kim with one arm raised and her legs moving slowly as she shifts her weight between them. She's looking out toward the treeline, and Kimberly realizes she must have been expecting Kim to arrive on foot through the woods behind her house.

 

Kimberly approaches carefully, stopping a few times to watch Trini's slow and precise movements. Trini shifts her stance gracefully from one position to the next, sweeping her arms in slow arcs and holding her posture steady. As she gets closer Kimberly can see Trini's breath come out in slow, measured gusts of steam as she focuses.

 

The entire sight is entrancing. Even once she's come up behind Trini and is standing on the same hilltop, Kimberly can't bring herself to break Trini's focus and interrupt her movements.

 

After a few minutes Trini turns her head, eyes closed, and breaks into a slow but unrestrained smile as she looks back over her shoulder toward where Kimberly is standing.

 

Trini lets out one last, long breath before she takes off her headphones and hits a switch to turn them off. The angry burst of noise Kimberly can hear before they shut off should feel completely incongruous to Trini's graceful meditation, but much like the girl herself, the contradictions fit together into a whole that makes perfect sense. At least, that's how it feels to Kimberly.

 

Trini opens her eyes and catches Kimberly still staring, “So you finally made it. Was wondering if you'd decided you needed your Sunday morning beauty sleep after all.”

 

Kim laughs, “Waking up was harder than I'd hoped, but I made it. Took me a while to find you though. At least I brought a peace offering?”

 

Kimberly holds out one of the two coffee cups in her hands with a sheepish smile.

 

Trini accepts it gratefully, “I knew I kept you around for something.”

 

Trini doesn't offer any more conversation for a while, just stands and drinks her coffee, alternately watching Kimberly and staring off toward the horizon and the oncoming sunrise.

 

Kimberly toes at the rocks under her feet nervously after a minute or two, and finally can't help but break the silence, “You were-” she cuts herself off, backtracks, “it's beautiful, whatever that was you were doing. Some kind of yoga? It looked really peaceful.”

 

If she notices Kimberly stumbling over her words, Trini doesn't comment, “Peaceful, yeah that's one word. It helps me focus, and it helps me tune everything else out for a while. I come up here as many mornings as I can. It's called tai chi. Somewhere between a martial art and meditation. My parents have had me in all kinds of self-defense and personal-enrichment martial arts classes since I was six. This is one of the only ones that stuck.”

 

Kimberly takes a step closer, “Well, Trini Gomez, you certainly are full of surprises.”

 

Trini closes her eyes again and raises her arms into another pose, “There's a lot you don't know about me, princess.”  
  


“I'm starting to see that,” Kimberly stands next to Trini and holds herself as still as possible, focusing on slowing her breathing to match Trini's, “Does it really help? Once you leave here, is it easier to deal with your family? Or their judgement? Does it make things hurt any less?”

 

Trini's motion stills, but her breathing stays steady, “Sometimes. More so since I met you guys. Gives me something to focus on when I can't just clear my head. Something that doesn't suck so much, you know?”

 

They breathe together in a slow rhythm for a few counts before Trini breaks the silence again, “Want me to teach you?”

 

Kimberly's “Yes. Please.” has never sounded more certain, or more hopeful.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

It takes the better part of an hour for Trini to walk Kimberly through a small handful of forms and poses. Kimberly's movements are unsure and her stance shaky, but there's an enthusiasm and willingness to learn that makes the experience go smoothly.

 

They don't talk much. Trini will perform a movement, or hold a stance, and Kimberly will carefully try to mimic her. This works for them, most of the time, but Kimberly will occasionally get lost in Trini's movements and calming presence, only to realize Trini has moved on to a new pose while Kimberly was distracted. Other times the forms are more complex than Kimberly can easily copy, and after several failures to get her body to bend itself in the way Trini has repeatedly tried to demonstrate, Trini finally gives up in a huff and relaxes her stance.

 

“Alright, that one's not working. Let's go back and try a few of the ones I showed you earlier, maybe see if you remember anything well enough to do it from memory.”

 

Kimberly's stubborn streak rears its head, and she refuses to let this last one go so easily, “No, show me again. I just don't think I'm turning at the right time. There's a few too many ways I need to move all at once, but I'm getting it. It's just slow going.”

 

Trini gives her an exasperated but fond smile, “Fine, but I can only show you this one so many times before you're gonna need to figure it out on your own.”

 

The next attempt goes no better than the first five. Kimberly stumbles over the leg movements, trying to keep them in sync with her arms. Trini breaks stance and moves to stand behind Kim, and places a hand on her shoulder.

 

Trini moves herself slowly into Kimberly's space, moving a hand down Kimberly's shoulder, onto her forearm, and places the other one lightly on Kim's waist.

 

“Alright, just focus on the leg movements. I'll guide your arms.”

 

It takes all the focus Kim has not to lean back into Trini's touch. She does as Trini said, moves her legs through the motions Trini's been showing her, and lets Trini's hands guide her arms. The entire motion feels more fluid and natural with Trini's guidance, the smaller girl's presence at her back and in her space narrows Kimberly's focus down to just the two of them. Her mind holds nothing but the moment, the feel of Trini's hands on her, her breath on Kimberly's neck.

 

It takes Kimberly a while to realize they've gone through the pattern at least three or four times. Trini finally stills against her back, but doesn't remove her hands or step out of Kim's space. The moment is charged, but comfortable, and Kimberly can feel a connection with Trini in this moment that runs deeper than the link they share through the morphing grid.

 

It's Trini that finally ends the connection and steps back and away from Kimberly. Her breathing has sped up from it's carefully measured pace, but it's still in time with Kimberly's.

 

“There. That's got it. I think you can probably do that one on your own now.”

 

Kimberly wants to say something else. Talking about tai chi now feels like a non sequitur, like Trini is bringing something up that has nothing to do with the last few minutes. Kim just has no idea what to say, and Trini is avoiding her eyes.

 

Trini eventually settles on staring out at the beginnings of the sunrise off in the distance. She calms her breathing and then finally breaks the silence, “So I think we've been out here for almost an hour now. Or I have anyway, since I wasn't off getting Starbucks. Want to go see if Zack's awake? He and his mom live a few minutes walk from here. He used to creep on me sometimes when I came out here in the mornings, so I know he's not always a late sleeper.”

 

Kimberly can tell that Trini's uncomfortable with what just happened between them, but she can't make up her mind on how to bridge the gap Trini is trying to put back between them. This feels important.

 

“Trini, wait. I don't-” Kim stumbles over her words again, “that wasn't. I mean, we're okay. We can practice some more if you want, and then maybe go see Zack after?”

 

Kimberly can't keep the hopeful plea out of her voice, and Trini seems a little less closed in on herself as she turns back to meet Kimberly's eye.

 

The ground shifts under Kimberly's feet, and it takes her a moment to realize she actually just felt the ground move and that it wasn't a side effect of the look in Trini's eyes.

 

There's a sudden rumble, and then a crash. The hillside above them gives way and the cascade of rocks and debris comes flying at them unnaturally fast, and it's only at the last second that Kimberly makes out shapes within the avalanche.

 

“Trini, look out! Putties!”

 

Kimberly dives toward Trini and knocks her to the ground as a monster formed of stone and dirt goes flying over their heads.

 

“Shit, shit, shit. I hoped we'd seen the last of these assholes,” Trini shouts as the girls find their feet.

 

Trini focuses for a second, closes her eyes and tries to concentrate, but then assumes a fighting stance and prepares for the remaining oncoming monsters.

 

“Fuck, I can't morph without the others. Any luck on your end?”

 

Kimberly thinks about her friends, tries to focus on the new family they are slowly building together. Her mind goes to that fragile connection she felt with Trini just moments before, and there's a flicker of _something_ in her chest where she's felt the morphing power before, but nothing more comes.

 

“Nope, I think we're on our own. No armor. We can do this though, right? It's just putties.”

 

Kimberly starts to pull herself into her own fighting stance just as the next creatures reach them and has barely raised her fists before one of the putties reaches out with an arm of stone and roots that elongates unnaturally and catches Kimberly by surprise right in the ribs.

 

She absorbs the blow the way she's been trained to, but it hurts a hell of a lot more than it did in simulations. Trini cries out as Kim gets hit and plants a kick into the monster's side that sends it toppling down the hill.

 

Kim gets her bearings and sees what must easily be a dozen putties surrounding their hill, with more forming in the distance. She readies herself once again, and then throws herself at the next approaching creature. The hit scrapes down her hand in a rough collision of flesh on rock, but the putty's form gives with the hit and pieces come flying off.

 

Trini positions herself at Kim's back and lets the tide of earth and stone wash over them. Their movements form a well practiced but rarely applied dance of kicks and dodges, punches and turns. The putties individually are no real threat to the Rangers, even without their armor, but every time they break one another forms in its place. Pieces of broken monster reconstituting themselves into new shapes almost faster than the girls can keep up.

 

The fight is exhausting.

 

Trini finally yells over the sounds of moving rock and ongoing fighting, “They won't stay down. We need an exit strategy.”

 

Kimberly nods grimly, “We need our armor. We _need_ the others.”

 

As the girls begin to fight their way off the hill, maneuvering around each other and through the crowd of putties, a stray hit catches Kimberly in the side of her head and she goes sprawling.

 

The world spins erratically and blurs around her as Kimberly comes to a stop on a clear patch of ground some feet away. Trini's shout is almost feral and she dives toward Kimberly, grabbing one putty by the arm and swinging it around in an arc that knocks down three more to clear the way to Kimberly's side.

 

Kimberly's eyes are still unfocused when she sees Trini lean down over her.

 

“Are you okay?” Trini asks, and there's barely concealed panic in her voice.

 

Kimberly is having a hard time stringing together a sentence, but Trini's hand on her cheek is warm and makes it easier to focus, “I...”

 

When Kim can manage words Trini looks around wildly for oncoming putties, and when she sees one that has approached much closer than she'd been prepared for the best she can do is throw herself over Kim's prone body as the creature brings down both stony fists on top of them.

 

The blow never lands. The world seems to stretch and spin around them as the colors wash out and all Trini can see is a bright, blinding yellow light, and then nothing.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

There's cool metal under Kimberly's back when she comes to. The lighting is dim and Alpha Five's panicked cries are drowned out by the blood pumping in her ears. The first thing she sees are Trini's eyes, not more than a foot from her own. She smiles.

 

“Hey, princess. Welcome back.”

 

Kim groans as the pain in her head and side comes back with a vengeance.

 

“Where... where are we? What happened to the putties?”

 

Trini smiles and sits back on her knees where she's still straddling Kim.

 

“We're back on the ship. Zordon says he's been bringing some of the ships old systems back online, and that includes a remote viewer and some teleporting tech. Got our asses out of the fire at the last minute there. I thought I'd lost you.”

 

The look on Trini's face says she means it. She carefully runs a hand along Kimberly's cheek and brushes some of her hair back from her face. Kimberly can do nothing but smile back at her, the narrow escape still driving her pounding heart rate. She moves her hand up to place it around Trini's where her hand has stilled on Kimberly's cheek.

 

There's a flash of colored light, and suddenly Jason, Billy and Zack are in the room with them. Kimberly tries hard to ignore them and focus on the look in Trini's eyes until Zack comes to a stop above them.

 

“Holy shit, are you guys okay? Alpha hacked into my phone somehow and told you guys were attacked before teleporting us here.”

 

He offers Trini a hand, and his grin is maybe a little too big when she meets his eyes, “You okay to stand?”

 

She gives him a look, but takes his hand anyway and lets him pull her to her feet.

 

Kimberly misses Trini's weight almost immediately, but the more the battle catches up with her the harder it is to focus on anything else.

 

“I think I'm just gonna... stay down here for a bit, if that's okay.”

 

The wall behind them comes to life. Zordon's face materializing on its surface.

 

“Rangers, it seems Rita was not as thoroughly defeated as we'd hoped. I can find no sign of her within my scanning range around Angel Grove. But the return of the putties surely means she's set her sights on the Zeo Crystal once again. I don't know when she'll strike next, but I've had Alpha prepare some new equipment for you that should hopefully keep you all more safe in the future.”

 

Alpha steps forward holding what appear to be five strange looking wrist watches.

 

Zordon continues, “Kimberly, are you alright? Being here, close to the morphing grid, should accelerate your healing, but if you think you may be more seriously injured we'll need to move you to the ship's medical bay.”

 

Kimberly struggles to a sitting position and Jason reaches out to steady her before she falls back to her side.

 

“I think I'm okay. Just took a couple good hits and one really rough blow to the head but it's nothing I can't shake off. Especially if this place is gonna heal me faster than normal.”

 

Trini steps closer and places a hand on Kim's other shoulder as Alpha passes out the watches.

 

Alpha begins to speak as he hands the devices out, “These are communicators. They will make it easy for you all to talk to each other in an emergency, and they'll allow Zordon to reach out if Rita or her monsters attack again. They also allow us to quickly lock on to your locations if any of you need another emergency evac in the future.”

 

Billy takes a step toward the swirling vortex of the morphing grid in the middle of the room, that has now shifted to show the small crowd of putties moving from the hillside near the mine and further toward the center of town.

 

Kimberly gets to her feet and grabs Trini's hand for a moment as she stands, “Alright, I think I'm good for round two. Let's go show Rita that what didn't work before isn't about to work now. I think it's morphin' time.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up: Rita crash lands on the moon, and finds something she didn't expect.


	2. No Prison Like Gravity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Caught in the gravity of Earth's moon, Rita realizes the Rangers may have found a far more effective prison for her than the depths of the ocean.  
> Or:  
> My take on Reboot!Rita landing on the moon, and what she might find there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This takes place immediately after the movie, catches up with the end of the last chapter by the time it's finished. I've moved this from being a stand-alone one-shot to being part of the main fic, let me know if you all feel like it doesn't fit. And don't worry, a new Ranger-centric chapter will be up later today.
> 
> If you read this while it was stand-alone it hasn't changed, so feel free to skim over it or skip it altogether, although I hope you'll tell me what you thought of it :)

[Cycle 868362857]

 

[Zeo energy readings stable]

 

[Evolutionary guidance systems partially online]

 

[Terraforming systems offline]

 

[Matter transfer systems partially online]

 

[Long range scanning systems operational]

 

         [Multiple aberrant biological species detected]

 

         [Unaccounted for sentient species detected; Core process override – interference forbidden]

 

[System diagnostic suspended]

 

…

…

…

 

[Cycle 868362858]

 

[Zeo energy readings stable]

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

The cold blackness of space has a comfortable familiarity about it. The crushing weight of the deep sea is replaced by a howling vacuum, but the cold, and the dark, and the emptiness feels like coming home.

 

Rita is nothing if not patient, when she needs to be.

 

This tiny little speck of a planet orbited its inconsequential star sixty five million times while she slept in the depths of its oceans. Caught in its gravity, Rita knows its only a matter of time before she crashes back to Earth. With luck, these new Rangers will be dead by then and the Zeo Crystal left undefended.

 

Zordon cannot act without his proxies. Rita knows no such weakness. When she returns, she will not underestimate his resources again.

 

She _will_ have the Zeo Crystal. She needs it. She's seen what's coming, and it will _not_ find her defenseless, all other life be damned.

 

When Rita finds herself caught in the gravity of Earth's moon, the massive crater she leaves on its surface is but a small fraction of the violent destruction she wishes she could wreak. The ocean was no true prison, but trapped on this lifeless rock with nothing but her bent and beaten staff, and the now cracked and fading Power Coin, she knows Zordon may have finally found a cell that will hold her, entirely on accident.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

[Cycle 868362859]

 

[Zeo energy readings show large spike in crystal activity]

 

         [Sensor arrays re-purposed for expanding monitoring]

 

         [Power Coin activity detected]

 

         [Rangers active on planet surface]

 

         [Powering up dormant systems]

 

[Evolutionary guidance systems partially online]

  

         [Critical AI malfunction detected; reboot in-process]

 

[Terraforming systems offline]

 

[Matter transfer systems partially online]

 

[Long range scanning systems operational]

 

         [Multiple aberrant biological species detected]

 

         [Unaccounted for sentient species detected; Core process override – interference forbidden]

 

[System diagnostic complete; awaiting Ranger input]

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

Rita spends the first three days of her new exile in a catatonic trance. No power she has available to her is capable of breaking this moon's gravitational hold on her and returning her to the planet below. Zordon and his Rangers have won.

 

On the fourth day she begins walking. No amount of patience will get her off this rock, but fading to nothing is not how Rita plans to end her existence. Sooner or later her visions will bear fruit and what she's seen will descend upon Earth's barely protected Zeo Crystal and consume life on this planet as it has on countless before.

 

When it comes, perhaps it will sense her presence here and she can either die with the life on the planet below, or perhaps leverage some unforeseen angle and escape the system entirely in its wake.

 

In the meantime, she'll be best served by getting to know her prison.

 

In truth, Rita's trek across the moon's surface is little more than an exercise in keeping her mind active. Most of her time at the bottom of Earth's ocean had been spent unconscious, her body clinging to life while the dormant Power Coin kept it alive. It was only the awakening of the other five that pulled her fractured mind back to the surface. Now she needs something to focus on to keep the pieces from breaking any further.

 

For weeks her work at mentally mapping out the moon's surface bears no obvious fruit, until one day it does.

 

Had she not been so thorough in her exploration, she might have missed the small bit of Eltarian tech entirely.

 

The cave it leads her to and the ship buried within are more than Rita could have dared to hope for.

 

It's been millennia since she last saw an Eltarian spaceship. She had no idea there had ever been more than one sent to this system. The dormant technology is ancient, but the flickering energy of Rita's cracked Power Coin is enough to send it flaring back to life.

 

It doesn't take her long to realize this ship will likely never fly again. Many of the exposed systems are horribly damaged, and while this ship is markedly different from the one that brought Rita and the rest of Zordon's Rangers to Earth, Rita knows enough to see that this one is beyond repair.

 

It isn't until she finds the ship's caretaker that she realizes exactly what kind of vessel she's found.

 

The caretaker AI seems to have made a lair for itself in one of the ship's secondary control rooms. As Rita approaches it comes scuttling out on four mechanical legs, inconsistently sized and each with a different number of joints. It has five more appendages that seem to function as arms, with different tools and devices mounted at each end.

 

It would hardly be recognizable if not for the central processing unit at its center and the uncomfortably lifelike face sitting atop it.

 

The Eltar had briefly toyed with the idea of terraforming and evolutionary engineering on recently formed worlds hosting Zeo Crystals. Only a few experimental ships had been sent out before the program had been shut down. Rita recognizes the face within this strange technological mishmash as the program creator's attempt at creating a lifelike sapient appearance to go with their caretaker AI. The development of the caretaker units had been scrapped along with the rest of the project. The Alpha units made users far less uncomfortable.

 

This particular unit seems to have modified itself dramatically.

 

The machine comes to a stop a short distance away from where Rita stands.

 

It speaks to her in Eltarian, “Welcome aboard, Green Ranger. Finster Unit 01 awaiting input commands. Terraforming systems are currently offline, but evolutionary guidance protocols and matter transfer arrays are both partially operational.”

 

Now _that_ sounds promising.

 

“Tell me more about this ship's matter transfer capabilities.”

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

As it turns out, the damaged matter transfer arrays are no longer capable of safely teleporting organic matter. It's a bitter set back that will keep Rita trapped here on this moon for longer than the ship's discovery had allowed her to hope, but at least she has the preliminary tools for exacting vengeance on Zordon and his new Rangers.

 

The Finster unit's appropriated control room is full of an absurd assortment of what appear to be figurines. Small constructions of stone mixed with bits of technology that all seem to bear passing resemblance to various forms of life created by the unguided evolution on the planet below.

 

The Finster unit appears to bear no love for the evolution of life on Earth it was unable to have a hand in, it's crafted figurines a testament to how it believes it might have done better.

 

Crash landing on the moon kept it from completing its appointed task, and it seems to have gone a bit mad in the millennia since. It rambles on in frequently broken sentences about the abhorrent evolutionary mistakes living on Earth, veering close to expressing a desire for wide scale eradication, before a block on its core processes kicks in.

 

It seems evolution of sentient life on Earth has disabled any ability on Finster's part to interfere.

 

Rita is not going to let a few lines of code stand in her way.

 

“Tell me, what would it take for a Ranger to assume full control of all processes aboard this ship?”

 

The Finster unit processes the question for a moment before responding, “A full system reboot performed by a user with an active Power Coin should grant full command access to the operating Ranger.”

 

Rita smiles, “Excellent. Once I've done that, you can tell me more about your evolutionary guidance systems and how they might be used to remove this planet's Zeo Crystal.”

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

The evolutionary guidance systems Finster spoke of have in fact been technologically cannibalized over the centuries in the creation of its strange crafted menagerie. Once exposed to the energy of an active Zeo Crystal, Finster's creations have been designed to utilize that life energy to complete their own evolutionary development, emerging as fully formed, fully autonomous, techno-organic constructs. Constructs that can then receive command instructions from the ship.

 

It's not a way off of Earth's moon, not yet anyway, but it's enough to get started.

 

The ship's damaged morphing grid is another unexpected windfall. It gives Rita a way to monitor the ship's long range scans of the planet, and Angel Grove in particular. With luck it might also allow Rita to reach out with her own power and animate her Putty minions on Earth's surface.

 

Rita stands over Finster's creations in quiet contemplation before selecting one and holding it up for inspection.

 

The caretaker looks on eagerly, “That is one of my personal favorites. I've been terribly disappointed in the evolutionary path of what this planet's sapients have termed 'Arachnids.'”

 

Rita takes the figurine with her as she steps over to watch the image currently displayed by the ship's morphing grid. In it, two small human figures stand on a rocky outcropping not far from the mine Rita had used in the creation of Goldar several weeks earlier.

 

Rita grips her damaged Power Coin tightly and reaches out mentally through the morphing grid.

 

She looks down at the object in her other hand, “Now tell me, Finster, _what can it do?_ ”

 

Zordon cannot act without his proxies.

 

It appears the universe is not without a sense of irony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is how we might get Finster, and monsters-of-the-week. Hopefully those of you who came for Trini/Kim content don't mind the detour. Wanted to lay some foundation for what's coming next. This story is getting more plot heavy than I originally planned, but so far I think that's a good thing :)
> 
> Next up: Trini contemplates friendship, and has to face some old fears now that Rita might be back.


	3. Don't Let Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trini tries to adjust to having friends she can count on, and Kimberly is there when she really needs her.

For Trini, getting used to having a stable group of friends requires an adjustment period.

 

For as long as she can remember it's just been her. Trini lives in her head. She watches people from a distance, reads them like books and makes up stories for the boring ones. She doesn't engage, doesn't ask questions, and doesn't look too close. Trini doesn't reach out and she doesn't make connections.

 

The world likes to hurt you when you lay down roots.

 

Trini tried once, two schools ago. Met a girl, got close, learned her story. It felt real and it made living in a new town and being the new kid a lot less lonely, until her parents saw her kissing a girl and put her on house-arrest for 'falling in with the wrong crowd'. It's hard to start a relationship with a girl you can only talk to between classes a few minutes a day.

 

She was on to new school number two within a month.

 

In the last two years Trini has learned to retreat into herself. She finds comfort in music, in books and netflix binges, in video games or exercise, in meditation. Anything to drown the loneliness out. Whatever she can find so she doesn't have to think about her life.

 

Now that the universe has conspired to give her friends – and Trini really, truly believes that's what the Rangers are, more than teammates – it's hard not to fall back on old habits. Trini's lost her natural impulse to reach out. It's easier to fall back on the familiarity of her solo distractions than to make herself vulnerable by trying to connect. Easier to let them come to her, and if they don't? Well, her cynical side thinks maybe that's easier too.

 

So far, though, they haven't let her down.

 

She has a standing invitation from Zack to come visit his mom. Trini's only taken him up on it once, and only once she was certain he'd got the message that she wasn't interested in anything else. The implied rejection bounced off of him so easily she might think he was never crushing on her at all, if she didn't read people so well.

 

Zack's mom is a sweetheart. Her English isn't the best, but it's obvious how happy she is to meet her son's new friends. It's through Mrs. Taylor that Trini finds out that Zack's actually really into dance. Hip hop mostly, and he's self-taught, but there's enough overlap between dance and the martial arts Trini's been raised on that she's asked him to teach her something next time she comes by.

 

Billy invites them all over on a weekly basis. He's always got something new to show them and it's normally something he couldn't bring to school. It's easy to tell he's never really had a group of friends before and it's been long enough for Trini that she can relate. His excitement over the whole thing is infectious.

 

Jason's honestly as much a protective older brother as he is a friend. He checks in on the whole team regularly, discusses fitness routines and plans training sessions. He means well, but Trini hasn't figured out what they have in common yet. He's a lot closer to Billy and Kimberly, and Trini figures that's okay for now. She likes Jason, and she knows he cares about her, maybe that's all they need.

 

As for Kimberly, well...

 

Kimberly is a can of worms Trini's been trying really hard not to open, or think about too hard, or at all really. Trini's been here before. She knows what these feelings are trying to lead her toward and she knows what it means when she can't stop thinking about her best friend's smile, or the color of her eyes, or way she plays with her hair, or...

 

Yeah, it's bad.

 

Kimberly really is on the road to becoming Trini's best friend. She invites Trini around to her house several times a week. They share books, and sometimes clothes whenever Kim finds something cute that doesn't look comically big on Trini's shorter frame. Kim share's music, and Trini would return the favor but she's not sure her taste in music is really Kim's speed. She's working up to it.

 

They gravitate toward each other in the halls between classes, and the rest of the student body is still by turns in awe of or terrified by Kimberly Hart – she did punch out Ty Fleming's tooth – so it doesn't take much to get people to rearrange their seating in the two classes Kimberly and Trini share so they can sit together and pass notes without throwing them across the room.

 

Trini's almost positive this is what having a best friend is supposed to be like, so she _really_ wishes her feelings would stop trying to complicate it. Trini's never had the experience of falling for a straight girl, but from how the internet tells it, it is _not_ an experience she wants to know first hand.

 

For now Trini is just going to do what she can not to think about her growing feelings, and if she ever invites Kimberly out for another morning tai chi session she'll do what she can to keep her hands out of Kim's personal space, maybe keep a bit more distance all around, just enough to put some boundaries back in their friendship.

 

So far, the whole 'having friends' thing seems to be working out for Trini. It's an adjustment. She's learning. Maybe it'll get rocky at some point but for now it's a hell of a lot better than things were before, even if her life is in danger a whole lot more as well. She's got friends for that too, and sometimes that new safety net she's not used to having really comes in handy.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

There have been two more Putty attacks in the week since their first reappearance, both in sparsely populated areas when the Rangers had been split up and isolated. It's a small blessing that Angel Grove's reconstruction efforts haven't been hit again, but the sudden reappearance of Rita's minions of choice is troubling. More troubling is the fact that Zordon can't explain it.

 

The Putties have been appearing in much smaller numbers since Rita's full scale attack on the Zeo Crystal, and it turns out that they're fairly easy to put down with the help of armor and backup. A strong enough hit to their center of mass seems to shut down their ability to regenerate, and in their third appearance the whole group of them seemed to run out of steam and collapse halfway through the fight.

 

Billy and Zordon have a host of theories about that one. Everyone seems to have at least some theories but no one has answers, and Trini just wants to know when they'll have to face Rita again. The possibility seems inevitable and it haunts Trini when she's alone and leaves her with a sense of unease she can't shake. Her sleep at night grows more restless by the day.

 

It's one week to the day after Trini and Kimberly's first brush with the reemergent Putties when it all finally boils over.

 

Trini wakes in the corner of her bedroom in a tangled mess of torn sheets, covered in cold sweat and shaking with fear and a sudden surge of adrenaline. She can't remember her dream but she can still smell salt water and the side of her neck throbs where her now almost invisible scars mark the only remaining evidence of Rita's first attack.

 

She can't stay here. Trini digs herself out of her ruined sheets and doesn't bother with shoes as she throws open her window and prepares to jump. She catches a mouthful of spider webs on the way down to ground level and picks up wet dirt and leaves on her trek through her backyard but she barely notices.

 

It's only once she finds herself three blocks away from home, in her pajamas, without a phone, at Zordon even knows what hour in the morning that Trini even starts to think about where she might go. _Away from here_ had been as far as her panicked thoughts could take her back in her bedroom.

 

The answer is as subconscious as it is obvious and Trini's already halfway there before it catches up with her where she's heading. So much for boundaries.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

It takes about five minutes of repetitive _plinks_ against Kimberly's window before she really starts to wake up. She scrambles around for her phone in the dark for a few moments before grabbing it and holding up the lock screen – a picture she'd taken of a bright pink stylized lightning bolt Billy had drawn for her a few weeks ago – to get some light.

 

The _plinks_ come at regular intervals against the glass of the window, and it takes Kimberly another minute or two to wake up enough to realize what might be happening.

 

When she finally opens up her window and one last small pebble goes sailing past her into the room, Kimberly is both incredibly shocked and _not at all_ to see Trini standing in her yard, staring at her feet or the treeline and otherwise pointedly _not_ looking up at Kimberly.

 

Kimberly's smile is tired, fond, and a little exasperated.

 

“Really? Are you seriously _throwing rocks_ at my window at,” Kimberly looks down to check her phone, “three in the morning?”

 

Trini just shrugs, but she finally meets Kimberly's eyes. In the dark her expression is hard to make out, but her posture is hunched in on itself and she's got her arms wrapped tightly around her waist. She almost looks like she's shaking. If Kimberly didn't know better she'd think Trini was cold, but mostly she looks nervous, and maybe a bit of something else Kimberly can't place.

 

Whatever this is about it's probably important, “Well come on up. It's super late, or early, whatever, and I'm not coming down there.”

 

This is probably important, but Kimberly's not about to scare Trini off by acting like it is.

 

Trini hesitates for a moment, hugs herself tighter and stares intently at her bare feet – and Kimberly will worry later about why Trini doesn't have shoes – and then she takes a sudden running jump and catches Kimberly's windowsill in one quick movement. Kimberly grabs her hand and pulls her through the window.

 

Kimberly takes a seat on the bed, but Trini stands awkwardly by the window and is still trying to look at anything but Kimberly.

 

Kimberly finds Trini's last pebble underneath her on the bed, holds it up to look at it and smiles, “So, any reason you decided to go with an outdated cliché instead of just sending me a text like a normal person?”

 

Trini tries to smile back but it looks as forced as it feels, “Forgot my phone,” she mumbles.

 

Kimberly laughs quietly, “And your shoes, apparently.”

 

Trini shuffles her bare feet nervously.

 

Kimberly lies back on her bed, and once the silence starts moving from awkward to unbearable she pulls back the sheets and climbs under them again. She holds them up next to her and gives Trini a pointed look.

 

“Come on then, you don't need to talk if you don't want to. Let's just sleep, you can tell me why you're here in the morning.”

 

Trini let's out a long breath she didn't know she'd been holding, and then slowly moves across the room and into the bed next to Kim.

 

Once Trini is settled, if a bit awkwardly, Kimberly pulls a blanket over them both and finds a comfortable position facing Trini across the pillows. Trini gives her a slow but grateful smile before she closes her eyes and tries to find sleep again.

 

Kimberly studies her friend's face carefully in the dim light filtering in from outside. Trini almost looks peaceful, but there's still a tension in her shoulders that won't leave. Kimberly hesitates for just a moment, then reaches across the distance between them before she can think too hard about it, and places a hand on Trini's waist under the blankets.

 

Trini shivers under the touch, but doesn't move away, and Kimberly doesn't fight the impulse to close the rest of the distance between them and wrap her arms around Trini's small frame. Trini bunches her hands in Kimberly's oversized night shirt and shakes more and more the further she sinks into Kimberly's embrace.

 

Trini finally lets out a quiet sob before burying her head in Kimberly's neck and clinging to her like she's the only solid foundation left in the world. Kimberly rolls onto her back and pulls Trini tightly into her side, holds her there while Trini shakes. There's no tears, but it takes several long minutes before Trini starts to come back to herself. Kimberly whispers softly into her hair.

 

Once Trini stills in her arms, Kimberly loosens her hold but doesn't let go or put any distance back between them. She keeps whispering meaningless words and phrases until Trini pulls back enough to meet Kimberly's eyes.

 

Trini starts to say something, but can't quite get the words out and Kimberly cuts her off with a finger to her lips and then pushes a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

 

“Shh, it's alright. You don't need to tell me tonight. Just sleep now. You can tell me when you're ready. I'm here for you whenever you need me. It doesn't even have to be me. We all are.”

 

Trini nods, tries to smile and just barely manages, and then burrows down deeper into Kimberly's arms. When sleep finds her shortly thereafter it is mercifully dreamless.

 

Kimberly slowly runs her fingers through Trini's hair while her breathing evens out in sleep. She doesn't know what brought Trini to her tonight, although she has her suspicions. Kimberly's just glad that Trini was willing to come to her at all. She feels a deep and meaningful warmth knowing Trini was willing to come to her in such a vulnerable state.

 

After the nightmare that was Rita's attack on Angel Grove, just like the town itself they're all a little bit broken, some more than others, but Kimberly will do everything she can to hold Trini together. They're all healing, a little bit at a time, and putting pieces of each other in the cracks. In this moment, with Trini sleeping peacefully in her arms, Kimberly has never felt more whole.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

Trini wakes before the sunrise the next morning, her internal clock is pre-programmed to get her out of the house before her mother wakes up, and so that she can fit some tai chi and meditation in before school starts.

 

Kimberly is still asleep, and the feeling of her arms around Trini feels dangerously comfortable, like something missing has slotted itself into place. Trini ignores the voice in her head that tells her this will only end in heartbreak and let's herself live in this moment for a few minutes. Kimberly is beautiful in sleep, and it's only once Trini has caught herself staring and doesn't know how long it's been that she realizes just how much she's not ready for whatever conversation is going to happen once Kim wakes up.

 

This is so far past the safe boundaries of friendship Trini has been trying to maintain.

 

After she calms down the panic that starts building in her head, Trini slowly and very carefully navigates her way out of Kimberly's arms. The Pink Ranger reaches out in her sleep toward Trini's retreating warmth, but doesn't wake, and Trini breathes a sigh of relief.

 

Trini starts to look around for her shoes before the previous night catches up with her and she remembers she doesn't have any, then quietly eases Kimberly's window open and drops as silently as she can manage to the grass below. The grass is wet with dew and sticks to her bare feet, and the early morning twilight illuminates the water gathered on dead leaves and spider webs scattered about the Harts' otherwise spotlessly manicured lawn.

 

Once she reaches the sidewalk Trini breaks into a jog that would feel like a full blown sprint on any normal teenager. She reaches the outskirts of the gold mine a few minutes before sunrise and the gravel and uneven ground under her bare feet is hardly noticeable.

 

Trini spots Zack out on his porch watching the sunrise a ways off, but hurries to find a hillside of her own out of sight of the trailer park. She really needs to be alone right now.

 

As the Saturday morning sun begins to make its way over the treeline, Trini does her best to empty her mind and focus. Trini quickly realizes that she's subconsciously found herself on the same outcropping she shared with Kimberly a week earlier.

 

Trini tries to lose herself in her regular tai chi routine, but her headphones and music are at home and there's nothing to drown out the silence. She can't shake the feeling of Kimberly's arms around her just minutes before, or the memory of her own arms around Kimberly while she guided her through the motions when they were here last.

 

After a few minutes of trying, and a few minutes of failure, Trini gives up and settles down on a nearby rock to watch the sunrise. She pulls her knees to her chest and wraps her arms around them as tightly as she can, closes her eyes, and wishes she'd been fearless enough to stay in Kimberly's arms this morning, wishes for just the briefest moment that Kimberly might want her there just as much.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're back. Decided to make this into a single chaptered story, so tell me what you think and whether it's working for you.
> 
> As all writers, I THRIVE on comments, so if you enjoy my story please leave a message and let me know what you think :)
> 
> Next up: It's Saturday. The gang's all here and Trini crashes detention to hang with her friends and hopes the teacher doesn't care enough to notice. Also Kimberly has a run in with Mrs. Gomez.


	4. Two Steps Forward...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kimberly tries to work out her own feelings, but struggles to get a read on Trini's. Mrs. Gomez tries to make sense of her daughter. The Rangers get a lead on some new super hero business and Trini crashes detention.

Kimberly wakes up alone, and feels the loss before she's conscious enough to know why. She reaches blindly across her bed, trying to grab on to something when the memory of Trini and the night before slowly starts to filter back in and her hand stills.

 

It should hurt that Trini is already gone, but Kimberly remembers how it felt after Trini had finally put down her walls last night and can't help but smile. Whatever it is building between them – and Kimberly's sure now that there's _something_ , and she's finding she's a lot more open to the possibility than she'd thought _–_ it's going to happen in its own time, and Kim can be patient. She'll wait for Trini to come to her.

 

Giving Trini space to open up is a good thought, but Kimberly suddenly realizes that maybe she should be a little more worried about Trini wandering around barefoot in the middle of the night, especially now that she has no idea where Trini is.

 

She grabs her phone and shoots off a quick text to make sure Trini made it home alright and then tries to get up and get ready for her Saturday. The digital clock on her lock screen tells her she's overslept and has less than an hour to get ready for detention.

 

Kimberly decided shortly after becoming a Power Ranger that she'd rather walk to school – well, run really – than continue to get rides from her dad or borrow the van, but that means she barely has a few minutes to finish waking up and is out the door, breakfast bar in hand, before her parents have even realized she's awake.

 

It's only as the path Kimberly regularly follows to school diverges from the one she's taken to Trini's house once or twice, that she starts to worry about the unanswered text she sent after waking up. It's not being clingy if she's legitimately worried about Trini's safety, is it?

 

Sure Kimberly had wanted to let Trini sidestep the awkward morning-after conversation. Trini's disappearance first thing this morning definitely said the girl wasn't ready to talk about whatever prompted last night's episode, but there have been Putty attacks all week, and if Trini doesn't have her phone she probably doesn't have her communicator. The fact that Kimberly also just really wants to see her is completely a non-factor.

 

The walk to the Gomez residence is spent alternately worrying about Trini's safety, then coming up with justifications and excuses for why Kim is checking up on her without forcing Trini to talk if she doesn't want to.

 

Kim is so caught up in her head that it takes her a second to realize she's been standing on Trini's doorstep for what could have been thirty seconds or just as easily ten minutes, and Kimberly forces herself to focus and calmly reaches out for the doorbell. Her hands totally aren't shaking and she's not nervous at all.

 

It's Trini's mother that finally answers the door, and the look she gives Kimberly says she'd better have a really good reason for showing up unannounced before ten on a Saturday.

 

Kimberly shifts her weight nervously from foot to foot, “Um, hi Mrs. Gomez. Is, uh, is Trini around? I'm Kimberly Hart, a friend of hers from school.”

 

Mrs. Gomez gives Kimberly a critical once over, clearly trying to figure out what kind of influence Kimberly might be on her wayward daughter, and what Kim's appearance might tell her about her daughter's social life. If this is a test, Kimberly has no idea whether or not she's passing.

 

Finally Trini's mother looks back over her shoulder briefly and then sighs, “I have no idea where she is. I've stopped trying to keep track. Either she's locked away in her room or she's out doing god knows what with god knows who. I don't even know where she goes every morning.”

 

Kimberly doesn't know how to respond to that. She knows Trini doesn't like her parents meddling in her business, and she knows they have a habit of being judgmental and controlling, but she had no idea Trini was so closed off to them that her mother would be dumping all this on a girl she's only just met.

 

Kimberly opens her mouth to start stumbling through a reply when she's saved at the last minute by the sudden appearance of Trini at her side.

 

Kimberly's mouth snaps shut and she looks cautiously between Trini and her mother, waiting for a cue.

 

The Gomez women are staring daggers at each other and seem to be daring each other to break the silence, finally Mrs. Gomez looks down and sees Trini's bare feet. Her eyes widen.

 

“What on earth are you doing out here without any shoes? I tolerate you running off first thing in the mornings because I know I can't stop you, but this is ridiculous.”

 

Trini sighs and gives a dramatic eye roll, “It's not a big deal, mom. I just went for a walk around the neighborhood. My feet are fine, and so am I. Now can I come in? I need to get changed.”

 

Trini looks up at Kimberly as if just noticing her presence, “Oh, and this is Kimberly. We've got a project for school we need to work on over at her house, so I'll probably be there for the rest of the day. I'll have my cellphone if you need me,” and with that she brushes past her mother and makes for the staircase toward her bedroom.

 

Kimberly feels even more awkward and nervous than she did before, “Yeah, um, what Trini said. Biology. We've got a biology... thing. At my house.”

 

Mrs. Gomez nods slowly, clearly not buying whatever Kimberly is trying to sell, but too tired of her daughter's secrets to argue. She leaves the door open behind her, goes to sit back down in the kitchen and picks up an ipad off the table.

 

Kimberly is saved from deciding whether or not to follow her into the house when Trini comes back down the stairs, fully dressed, beanie and backpack in place, communicator once more on her wrist. She grabs Kimberly's hand as she passes and pulls her down the walkway toward the street.

 

It takes Kimberly a second to process the feeling of Trini's hand her in own before she tightens her own hold around it. Trini returns the gesture after a moment, then nervously looks over her shoulder at the kitchen window and drops Kimberly's hand like she's been burned.

 

Kimberly pulls her hand back awkwardly and begins to fiddle nervously with the fingers on her other hand while Trini looks down at her shoes and grips her backpack straps tightly.

 

Kimberly coughs lightly to break the silence, “So, um, sorry about showing up here without warning. I hope I didn't complicate things with your mom at all.”

 

Trini gives Kim a nervous look and then tries to smile to break the tension, “No, she's just... well she gets like that whenever she remembers I'm not the perfect daughter she expects me to be and that I have a life she doesn't control. It's not you.”

 

Kimberly considers her next words carefully, “Maybe if she just got to know us? Your friends, I mean, me and the other Rangers. It kind of just seems like she wishes she knew more about your life, not that-”

 

Trini has started to walk faster and it puts her ahead of Kimberly by a few paces, Kimberly cuts herself off and rushes to catch up, “You know what, never mind. It's not my business and I'm sure you have your reasons for keeping her out of your life. Sorry again for turning up randomly, I just wanted to make sure you got home alright. You never answered the text I sent this morning – which now that I think about it was probably because you didn't have your phone. Right.”

 

Trini slows her pace a bit and they settle into a more comfortable silence for a block or two.

 

Trini's the one to break it this time, “Thanks. For checking in. And for... for last night.”

 

Kimberly smiles at that, but doesn't respond, letting Trini's thanks go without forcing the girl to open up any further.

 

After another couple minutes of comfortable silence, Trini lightly bumps her shoulder into Kim's and catches her eye, “So, what can I expect from detention?”

 

So far, Trini is the one member of their ragtag little band of super heroes who _doesn't_ have mandatory Saturday detention. Zack's return to attending class on a regular basis had only managed to shed a brighter light on his past absences and the administration finally decided to crack down.

 

Kimberly gives her an incredulous look, “Wait, are you planning to just... show up to detention? Did you do something to earn it that I don't know about, or did you just decide to crash?”

 

Trini laughs, the sound is comfortable and Kimberly feels like they're finally back on even ground.

 

Trini picks up her pace again and then turns around to face Kimberly while she walks backward, the school finally in sight behind her. Her smile is infectious.

 

“What are they gonna do? Give me detention?”

 

Trini spins around on her heel right as the girls pass under a large tree outside the school, and she ends up spitting and coughing around a mouthful of spider web. Kimberly tries to hold in her laughter but the sight of tiny, angry, bad ass Trini Gomez hacking and spitting and pulling spiderwebs out of her mouth is too funny to resist.

 

Trini finally starts to pull herself together, washing her mouth out with her water bottle a few times, when Zack wanders up from the parking lot and puts a hand on her shoulder. He's already smirking and Kimberly still hasn't gotten her laughter under control.

 

Trini scowls at him so fiercely that in any other moment, if Zack were any other person, he'd have already turned and run for shelter.

 

“Not. A. Word.”

 

Trini punctuates the statement by very slowly and deliberately removing Zack's hand from her shoulder.

 

Kimberly slides up next to Trini on her other side and puts her arm around the shoulder Zack's hand was just removed from.

 

Kimberly grins, “Aw, come on, it was kind of cute.”

 

Trini's scowl is a little less fierce and a little more shy and nervous, and she mutters under her breath as they head into the building, “Damn spiders. I swear they're in mating season or something. That's like the third time that's happened this week.”

 

Zack finally speaks up from Trini's left, his smirk still in place, “And I missed the other two?”

 

Trini's hand flies out faster than Zack can jump away and smacks him in the stomach so hard a normal person would be wheezing on the ground. He barely flinches.

 

Trni shrugs off Kimberly's arm as they near the detention hall and Kimberly finds herself awkwardly playing with her own fingers again as Trini quickens her pace to reach the detention hall first. Billy and Jason are already seated at one of the tables, an article cut out of Friday's paper spread out between them. Jason waves the trio over and Billy looks up with a smile that widens noticeably when he sees Trini with the other two Rangers.

 

Zack seems to have taken Trini's added presence in stride and without comment, but Jason greets her as she finds a seat between Billy and Kimberly.

 

“Hey Trini, decided you missed all of us delinquents too much to pass up Saturday detention?”

 

She grins, “Yeah, something like that.”

 

Billy has gone back to pouring over a notebook he has set out next to the article on the table, “I'm really glad you're here. Well, no, it's a bad thing that you got detention. Sorry. I didn't mean I was glad about that. I'm sorry you're here. Wait, no, but I am happy to see you!”

 

Trini shrugs, “Hey, no worries. I don't have detention. I just decided I'd show up here anyway. Figured the worst they could do was kick me out.”

 

Kimberly peers over the article spread out on the table while her friends talk. It seems to be about a recent series of missing persons cases. The author speculates that the four missing people, who have all vanished within the last week, are likely connected and that the police aren't doing more because of a missing persons backlog after the 'Angel Grove Disaster' at the end of last month.

 

Kimberly pulls the article towards herself to get a better look and Trini notices the title as it passes in front of her

 

She looks back up at Billy, “So, are we taking on missing person cases now? Not enough action on the super hero front, so it's time to branch out?”

 

Billy looks around nervously for a second at the words 'super hero' and then turns back to Trini, “Well no, not branching out. I think... Rita is keeping us busy enough with the latest Putty attacks. Not that missing people aren't important. Jason and I were just speculating-” and off of Jason's look he corrects, “ _I_ was speculating that these cases might already fall under our jurisdiction. I've been keeping an eye out for news that might gives us ideas about the sudden return of Rita's monsters. I decided to give this one a closer look after I saw that the first missing person, a 'Tamsin Oliver' went missing while hiking out in the woods not far from where you and Kimberly first encountered Rita's new Putties.”

 

Kimberly continues reading the article in more depth while trying to keep an ear on Billy's explanation when a sentence near the end of the article catches her full attention:

 

… _Oliver, along with local business owner Ernie Genelle and high school students Amanda Clark and Tyler Fleming._

 

Kimberly's breath catches in her throat for a moment and she has to breathe deeply and carefully for a few more to keep calm and keep the others from noticing her reaction. Zack, who has been watching the group conversation from Kimberly's other side seems to notice Kimberly's silence and distraction.

 

He nudges her shoulder with his own, “Hey, you look like you just remembered you've got an exam in ten minutes you haven't prepared for. Everything alright?”

 

Kimberly looks back down at the article and then up at Zack and forces a small smile, “Yeah, fine. Just looking over the article to see what this is all about.”

 

She quickly pushes the article back toward Billy. Zack seems to think nothing more of it and turns back to the rest of the group, but on Kimberly's other side Trini gives her a look that says she knows something's up.

 

Kimberly tries to force a more believable smile but Trini seems to see right through it anyway, and her concerned frown deepens. Trini starts to say something but Kimberly puts a hand on her knee under the table and tries to angle her head away from the rest of the group and mouths 'Not now'. Trini nods slightly and then puts a hand over Kimberly's and leaves it there for a few seconds before removing Kimberly's hand from her leg. She turns back to Billy as if nothing has happened.

 

Kimberly tries not to feel disappointed at the loss of contact. She still hasn't quite worked out what's going on between herself and Trini, and today's mixed signals aren't helping. Maybe she's just reading too much into Trini's naturally closed off nature, but Kim knows Trini is into girls, or at least she's pretty sure she is, and Kimberly is... well she's not opposed to the idea, not after the events of the last week, but maybe Trini isn't on the same page.

 

Trini reaches over and taps the article headline twice while she looks between Billy and Jason, “So, what's the plan?”

 

Jason looks back and forth between Kimberly and Trini curiously while Billy starts to speak, “Well my theory is that these missing person cases may all connect back to us. Places we've spent a lot of time. People with connections to us. I started by hacking into the police database to see what they had on the cases, and I found four other missing people that I at first suspected might be connected as well. I made a chart and included where they lived, what I could learn about their daily routines, various other personal details. I didn't find any evidence to connect the other cases, but I haven't ruled them out. I want to see if I can cross reference with any of the details we might find when we investigate the Community Center later, but until I have more data-”

 

Jason leans over and cuts Billy off, “What Billy meant to say is that the four people in this article all have links to some of us. Tamsin went missing out in the woods between Kimberly's neighborhood and the mine, not far from where she and Trini fought the first new Putties. The rest all went missing around the Angel Grove Community Center owned by Ernie. I used to spend time there occasionally, but I know Trini,” he nods in her direction, “is there twice a week for those Taekwondo classes her parents put her in after the attack. And then the last two missing people...”

 

Jason trails off and Kimberly finishes his sentence, “Are Amanda Clark and Ty Fleming, my ex-best-friend and ex-boyfriend. Right.”

 

Kimberly tries not to let on how conflicted she is over that detail, “So, we're heading to the community center to investigate.”

 

“Kim...”, Trini starts, but as she reaches to find Kimberly's hand again, someone at the front of the detention hall clears their throat loudly.

 

The teacher in charge of detention looks at the group tiredly, “If you all are done socializing, this is detention. Find your own desks and I'll take attendance.”

 

The Rangers move to spread out and find separate seats. Once Trini gets settled, she pulls out a piece of paper and starts thinking about writing a note to Kimberly. She stops paying attention to the teacher as he calls out names until his voice starts to get louder as he repeats himself.

 

“Tommy Oliver? Tommy Oliver? Is there a Tommy in here? No?”, he sighs and jots down a note next to Tommy's name on his attendance sheet and moves on.

 

Once he reaches the end of the list he looks around the room and Trini tries really hard to act bored and uninteresting and hopes he won't notice her.

 

“Hey, you. Did I call your name?”

 

No such luck apparently. Trini looks around a bit nervously, “Um, yeah, I think so. Sorry, I wasn't paying attention.”

 

He gives another put upon sigh, “Right, of course you weren't,” he looks over his attendance sheet again, “Tamsin Oliver?”

 

Trini decides to run with it, “Yeah, that's me. Sorry.”

 

The teacher mutters something to himself and scratches out the note he made earlier. When he pulls out his phone and stops paying attention to her, Trini looks around at the other Rangers. Jason is giving her a weird look and she shrugs at him in response and does her best to say 'What was I supposed to do?' without speaking.

 

A note from Billy hits Trini in the shoulder and she just manages to catch it before it hits the ground. ' _Tamsin is one of our missing persons. If she has detention with us we_ _NEED_ _to look into this as soon as possible.'_

 

Trini looks over at Kimberly to find Kim already watching her, their eyes meet and they can each tell the other is onto the same thing. These disappearances aren't connected to the Rangers as group, they're connected to Trini and Kimberly.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we're about to start moving on some plot stuff. Hope you guys are ready. Let me know what you think in the comments. Nothing keeps me motivated like hearing from readers.
> 
> Next time: The team investigates the community center and finds something weird. Trini starts to open up about Rita.


	5. Tangled Webs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The hunt for the missing persons turns personal for more than one Ranger, and the team makes an unexpected discovery at the Angel Grove Community Center.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There have been some hints before now, but I would caution anyone who might be arachnophobic to read carefully for the next couple chapters. Here there be spiders.

Kimberly is quiet and subdued for the rest of detention. Trini spends about fifteen minutes trying think up something to put in a note, put her thoughts into words, but nothing comes. Trini still doesn't know the details of what happened between Kimberly, Ty, and Amanda, but she knows Kim still feels awful about it. Kimberly might want nothing to do with either of them now, and the feeling seems mutual, but they were important to her once, and now they're missing – maybe dead. Trini knows what it feels like to worry about someone, but she can't imagine the mess of guilt and confusion Kimberly must be going through.

 

The next hour and forty five minutes pass in relative silence. Billy tosses her another couple notes, some with additional input from Jason already on them, reiterating the plan to investigate the Community Center as soon as possible, but Trini starts to withdraw and returns nothing but half-hearted nods and shrugs.

 

Kim's somber mood compounds Trini's own anxiety over Rita's return, and having brought nothing with her to distract from her thoughts, Trini is a mess by the time the group gathers their things at the two hour mark and sets off for the other side of town. She's pretty sure the others can't tell how bad it's gotten but she takes the first opportunity to distance herself and find a second alone to breathe.

 

When the team passes a turn that leads toward Trini's house, she stops and nods in that direction, “Hey guys, I think I forgot some things at home if we're gonna be out superheroing all afternoon. I'll catch up with you at the Community Center,” she says.

 

Trini doesn't wait for a response and starts to walk away. Zack says something she doesn't quite catch but she doesn't notice anyone moving to follow her.

 

Trini's a block away and out of sight when she collapses to the curb and drops her head into her hands. Her breath is shaky and she can't quite seem to get it to come evenly.

 

It's there that Kimberly finds her a few minutes later.

 

Trini's mostly calmed down but she hasn't been able to convince herself to get back up and start walking. Kimberly sits down next to her and starts to put an arm around her shoulders, but seems to think better of it at the last second. Trini's torn between disappointment and relief.

 

Kimberly takes a deep breath and exhales slowly but doesn't immediately say anything.

 

The silence between them gets louder as the minutes tick by, finally Trini can't fight the need to fill it with something. She doesn't look at Kim as she speaks, “I just needed a second alone.”

 

Trini can see Kimberly nod out of the corner of her eye, “I know,” is all she says.

 

Trini pulls her knees up in front of her and wraps her arms around them, “She's really back, isn't she?”

 

The words sit uncomfortably in the air between them. Kimberly sighs.

 

“Maybe. We don't know that these disappearances are her doing. We don't even know if they have anything to do with _us_ ,” Kimberly says, although it's hard to tell if she believes it.

 

Trini shakes her head, “Don't. This is her. It has to be. This is how she works, right? Find your weakness, hit you when your guard's down, use you against the people you care about.”

 

Kimberly straighten a bit at that, “Trini, that's not exactly what's happening. How is Rita planning to use us against these missing people? Or even use them against us? Why would she take these people if she wanted to get at people close to us? Sure I don't want Ty and Amanda to die but I don't-”

 

Trini cuts her off with a shake of her head.

 

“That's not the point. The point is Rita is back and just like last time people are going to get hurt and _it's going to be my fault_ ,” Trini says as she gets to her feet and starts to pace, “Last time she was here she used me to kill Billy!”

 

Trini hugs herself tightly as she walks back and forth, trying to contain her anxiety, “and now she's got Ernie,” she finishes quietly.

 

Kimberly stands, steps in front of Trini, and waits for Trini to meet her eyes before she says, “What happened to Billy _wasn't your fault_. We all underestimated Rita. We voted. We were all fed up and wanted to take the fight to her and she set up the perfect trap for us to fall into. You can't blame yourself for that.”

 

“Can't I?” Trini asks, “I was the only one who'd faced her. I _knew_ how powerful she was. She picked me because I was weak and she knew I'd run to you guys, knew I'd want to pick a fight after what she did to me, and she knew she'd win. I was the bait and I was stupid and Billy died because of it.”

 

Kimberly carefully puts her hands on Trini's shoulders and fixes her with an intense stare, “ _Rita_ killed Billy, _not you_ , and she would have found a way to get what she wanted no matter what. How do you know she wouldn't have picked us all off one by one separately until she got to Billy and made him talk? If we hadn't fallen into Rita's trap do you honestly believe she wouldn't have killed anyone some other way? The ways thing played out, we won and Billy's alive. Anything else that happened is Rita's fault, not yours.”

 

Some of the anger starts to leave Trini and she sags slightly into Kimberly's hands on her shoulders. Kimberly pulls her forward until Trini is leaning against her and then wraps her into a hug.

 

“We're gonna figure this out. We'll find out what happened to Ernie. And Ty, Amanda, and Tamsin. We'll help them if we can, and no matter what we will stop Rita. We're stronger than her. We're stronger together,” Kimberly say softly into Trini's hair.

 

Trini doesn't feel strong. Kimberly keeps finding her at her weakest. She's trying so hard not to fall for Kimberly but Kim keeps finding new cracks to fit herself into. Kimberly probably won't return her feelings, but more importantly their encounter with Trini's mother this morning has reminded her how fragile all of this is. If her parents decide to move again, or if they try to separate Trini from the other Rangers, from Kimberly, they all have so much to lose. Trini can't afford to give them a reason.

 

Kimberly has started to run her fingers through Trini's hair, and Trini can't bring herself to stop her or pull away.

 

“Tell me about Ernie,” Kimberly finally says after a minute or two, “You're worried about him. Who is he?”

 

Trini takes a slow breath before speaking, “I've always hated spending time in my parents' house, since long before I met you guys. I've always been looking for things to keep me away from it. It's why I head out to the mine for an hour or two around sunrise or sunset whenever I get a chance, but there's only so much meditating you can do. Thing is, Angel Grove is kind of boring.”

 

Kimberly laughs.

 

“So a while back I found the Community Center and started spending time there. There's a cheap arcade, weird classes and stuff, free movies, a gym. It was a place where I could just go and be in my head for a while without anyone bothering me. Ernie noticed me after a few weeks and started giving me free drinks and stuff. Let me talk without commenting on anything when I needed to get something out.”

 

Kimberly smiles, “You? Talk? Since when?”

 

Trini pulls back to glare up at her, “I can stop if you want.”

 

Kimberly shakes her head quickly, “No, no. I'll shut up.”

 

Trini sighs, “Ernie's a good guy. He doesn't deserve to get caught up in Rita's bullshit, and I can't help feeling like it's because of me.”

 

“We don't know that yet. We need to check out the Community Center to get some answers. Hopefully there will be answers there, or at least a trail we can follow since it was the last place Ernie and the others were seen. Whatever happened, we'll find him, and none of this is your fault. Okay?”

 

Trini nods, but she's not sure her heart is in it.

 

\- - - - - - - - -

 

The Angel Grove Community Center is a large, single-story building roughly in the center of town. Fifteen years ago it was a social hub of the city, popular with the town's youth in a city with little else to do. It's popularity has fallen off over the years, but in a rare show of community spirit after Rita's attack, the center has seen a resurgence of foot traffic and attendance, so it feels off when Trini and Kimberly catch up to the other Rangers outside the building and find it and the surrounding parking lot completely empty.

 

Kimberly and Trini arrive to find the boys standing around outside the locked front doors. Billy is sitting on the curb with a notebook open on his lap, while Jason leans against the wall of building and Zack paces up and down the sidewalk. Jason waves Kim and Trini over when he sees them.

 

He looks at Trini, “Get everything you needed?” he asks, and shifts his eyes between her and Kimberly like the question was aimed at both of them.

 

Trini nods but doesn't say anything. Jason raises an eyebrow at Kimberly as Trini walks past him toward the doors and Kimberly shrugs in response.

 

“So, anything out of the ordinary?” Kimberly asks.

 

Zack stops pacing to face her, “Aside from the place being closed on a Saturday? We got here about fifteen minutes ago and haven't been able to figure out anything beyond that. The place is locked up. Not much we can do from out here.”

 

Kimberly frowns and starts to ask Billy something when she's interrupted by a loud snapping crunch coming from the direction of the doors. Billy starts at the sound and the group all turn to look at where Trini stands in front of the doors. She is still holding onto the metal handle of the door which she's just wrenched downward, breaking the lock in the process. Trini pulls the door open and a few pieces of broken metal fall out of the now destroyed locking mechanism.

 

Trini shrugs, “What? How else were we going to get in?” she asks.

 

Zack starts laughing loudly and then turns to Jason, “See, I told you we should just break in,” he says. He walks over to Trini to offer her a high five but she doesn't return the gesture. He shrugs and walks into the building, still grinning. Trini follows him in.

 

Jason calls after them, “Yes, you said we should break in, and then _we agreed_ that it wasn't worth it to start breaking down doors on a hunch.”

 

He starts to say something else but Kimberly steps closer to him and cuts him off, “It's more than a hunch to her. And anyway it's done now, let's go see if we can find anything.”

 

Billy closes his notebook and head into the Community Center and Kim and Jason follow after him. Trini and Zack are standing around in the building's main room and quietly looking around. Something about the building feels off without any lights or people. Trini absentmindedly runs a hand along the counter of the juice bar along the far wall.

 

Kimberly walks over and leans against the counter next to her and then calls over to Billy and Jason, “Alright, so what are we looking for?”

 

Billy flips through his notes for a second but then looks back up at Kimberly, “I don't really know. The police didn't have much to go on.”

 

Jason shrugs, “Well hopefully we'll know it when we see it,” he says.

 

The group spreads out to investigate the building, and shortly after they split up a high pitched yelp followed by a shout in Chinese comes from where Zack had wandered into a back hallway.

 

Trini arrives first, takes a second to process what she's seeing, then immediately bursts out laughing and is trying hard to pull herself together by the time Kimberly, Jason, and Billy arrive.

 

The group finds Zack standing in the middle of the hall, jumping and swatting at himself while trying to spit something out of his mouth. He appears to have run face first into a massive spider web and is frantically trying to get it off.

 

Trini manages to get her laughter under control and steps up next to Zack, “You've got-” she fights down another laugh, “you've got something on your arm.”

 

Zack looks down at his right shoulder where Trini has indicated and screams as he tries to flick a several inch long spider off of his arm. It finally goes flying and he backs away toward the main entrance and tries to control his heavy breathing.

 

Trini is still grinning smugly when Zack finally speaks, “Yeah, so, I'm gonna... I'm gonna go wait for you guys outside,” he says and then turns and walks quickly back toward the parking lot.

 

The other Rangers look back and forth between each other. Trini grins, “So, Zack is scared of spiders. Who knew?”

 

Kimberly gives her a pointed look when Trini gives another small laugh, “Didn't you have a spider run in of your own just this morning? You're hardly one to talk,” Kimberly says.

 

Trini looks offended, “Hey, _I_ didn't scream. Everyone hates running into spider webs. And I'm totally entitled to laugh at Zack about this. Turnabout is fair play and all that.”

 

Jason calls to them from the other end of the hall, “Guys, you should come take a look at this. I'm pretty sure that's not normal,” he nods toward an even larger web that has all but taken over the far end of the hallway.

 

Billy has already started writing something in his notebook, “This isn't normal at all. It would have taken dozens of spiders the size we found on Zack to make a web this big, and it looks like there might be more deeper into the building. Now this is obviously not natural, but I don't think we can automatically assume Rita is behind it. I think we should head back to the ship and talk to Zordon, see if he-”

 

Trini stops listening to Billy, grits her teeth and then closes her eyes and walks straight through the largest patch of web and through the cracked open door at the end of the hall. The other Rangers stand around looking at each other and toward where Trini has disappeared at the other end of the hallway. No one moves for a few seconds.

 

Jason opens his mouth to say something and then closes it again, finally he says, “That girl knows no fear, does she? I mean, we're all clear on the part where these are possibly alien spiders, right?”

 

Kimberly smiles after Trini, “Oh I'm sure she's as creeped out and disturbed as the rest of us – well, maybe not Zack – but this is personal for her.”

 

Kimberly starts to follow after Trini, “Well come on, let's figure out what all this spider nonsense is about,” she calls back over her shoulder at Jason and Billy.

 

The room at the end of the hall seems to be some kind of storage or maintenance room. Spider webs cover almost every available surface and hang in the corners and between shelves and the floor. Several larger spiders scatter as the group enters, ranging in size from a couple inches to one larger than Trini's palm. A back door leading to the rear side of the building stands open and the area around it is free of webs.

 

No one knows what to make of this new discovery. The group spread out in the small room, doing their best to keep the webs and spiders off of themselves, and try to look for clues – anything to tell them what happened here.

 

After about a minute of looking around, the silence is broken by a loud clanging sound and everyone turns toward where Trini has kicked a large dent in a metal cabinet.

 

“There's nothing here but more spiders,” she spits angrily, “Damn it!” Trini kicks the cabinet again.

 

Kimberly puts a hand on Trini's shoulder, “It's alright, Trin, this is a start. We just need to talk to Zordon. We _will_ get answers.”

 

Trini closes her eyes tightly and takes a deep breath, lets it out slowly.

 

Before she can say anything else, Billy calls out from the other side of the room, “Guys, I think I might have found something.”

 

Trini rushes to his side, Kimberly and Jason follow behind her while trying to navigate around the webs clinging to them everywhere they turn. Trini doesn't seem to notice the webs stuck in her hair or caught in her clothes.

 

Billy gestures to a section of wall near the back, hidden behind some shelving, “Here, see?” he says.

 

Trini looks between him and the empty wall, “There's nothing here. What am I looking at?”

 

Billy steps closer and runs a hand along a bare portion of the wall, then steps back and points at two other spots, “No webs. This part of the wall doesn't have any webs on it, and if you look closely, the webbing nearby isn't attached to anything. Something was here that isn't anymore.”

 

Trini kneels down to look at one of the empty spots, “Or someone,” she finishes. Trini inspects the ground more closely, and notices marks on the dusty, web-strewn floor.

 

“Wait, I think they were dragged out of here. There's marks on the floor that lead outside. What if the missing people were in here, but were moved before we got here?” Trini says.

 

Jason shakes his head as if to clear it, “This is insane. Are we saying that the missing people were, what, tied up by spiders? Spiders who moved them because we were coming?”

 

“It would hardly be the most insane thing that's happened in this town, and we don't know they were moved because we were coming, just that they were here and now they're not. It's a lead – a good lead,” says Kimberly from where she's standing at Trini's shoulder.

 

Billy calls out to the group again from where he's wandered out of the back door, “Guys, there's something else out here you need to see.”

 

Outside the building, Billy has followed the faint trail Trini spotted in the storeroom and is kneeling down next to something on the outside wall of the building.

 

Kimberly looks over his shoulder at what's gotten his interest and gasps, “Is that... a claw mark?”

 

“Probably not a claw, no,” Billy says, “but something big did this,” he runs his fingers through a deep gouge scratched into the bricks.

 

Jason gives out a low whistle, “Shit, we need to talk to Zordon. If we've got a giant alien spider on our hands I want to know everything he might be able to tell us before we try to hunt it down. I'm gonna go find Zack. Get on your communicators and get Zordon to teleport you guys back to the ship. We need a game plan. And I need my sword.”

 

Kimberly watches Jason walk away and then turns back to where Trini is still standing in the doorway to the storeroom, a grim look on her face but determination in her eyes. Kim wants to go to her and offer some kind of comfort, but doesn't know what to say. _I'm sure they're alright_ or _everything will work out_ sound empty even in her head, and Trini's not one for platitudes. Whatever this is, they're superheroes and they can handle it, but how can they possibly be sure the missing people are still alive? Alien spiders? When did this become their lives?

 

Kimberly finally decides to step into Trin's space and waits for the smaller girl to look up and meet her eyes, “We're going to find this thing,” Kimberly says.

 

Trini nods, “and I'm going to kill it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So my work and personal schedules have been getting pretty hectic lately. I'm still finding time to write and I've got an outline together to keep me on track, but if time between updates grows a bit for the next few chapters I apologize in advance and now you all know that I'm not just disappearing on you. Hope everyone is still enjoying the story! Please tell me what you think! Leave a comment, even if it's just to tell me you read the chapter :)
> 
> Next time: The team meets up at the ship and makes a plan with Zordon for finding and dealing with alien spiders.


End file.
